Fujifilm Digicam To Offer Adds HD Video Recording

VALHALLA, N.Y. — Fujifilm bolstered its holiday line, due to ship in September, with its first digital camera to record HD movies.

In a shift, two of three new cameras announced by Fujifilm today will accept only SDHC memory cards and not xD Picture Card memory. Previously, the company had incorporated dual memory card slots into all of its cameras.

The 10-megapixel S2000HD ($299) features a 15x optical zoom (27.6mm-414mm, 35mm equivalent), a 2.7-inch LCD and 1,280 by 720 video recording.

The camera features a new one-touch instant zoom, which automatically activates either a 1.4x or 2x digital zoom. Also new is a zoom bracketing feature, which captures three images in succession — one at standard zoom, one at 1.4x digital zoom and one with 2x digital zoom.

The camera features CCD-shifting image stabilization and an ISO-boosting Picture Stabilization technology, which achieves a maximum of ISO 6,400 for 5-megapixel still images. It also includes face detection, 13 scene modes, manual controls, a 6.8-fps bust mode up to 33 5-megapixel stills.

The 12-megapixel FinePix F60fd will also carry a $299 price tag. The camera will feature a 3x optical zoom, a 3-inch LCD, the third generation of the company's face detection technology and a new SR Auto scene recognition mode. With the SR Auto mode, the camera will identify the subject, scene or faces and make adjustments to focus, white balance, ISO and exposure accordingly.

The F60fd incorporates CCD-shifting image stabilization alongside an ISO-boosting Picture Stabilization mode. It features 13 scene modes, and a burst mode of 5 fps for up to 12 3-megapixel stills. It works with xD and SD memory cards.

Finally, the 10-megapixel J150w sports a 3-inch LCD, a 5x optical zoom (28mm-140mm, 35mm equivalent), face detection, a picture-stabilization mode, 13 scene modes and VGA/30-fps movie capture. It will accept SDHC memory cards.

It will be sold in black or silver for $199.